Monthly Archives: September 2010

Lamar Odom had this to say when asked about the Lakers’ trip to play exhibitions in London and Barcelona next week: “I’d rather rest in my bed and spend time with my girl (his wife Khloe Kardashian). She took the trip with me for the World Championships (in Turkey in early September). She has to work, make the donuts, keep this boat afloat, you know what I’m saying? She decided to stay home. I’m going to be all by myself in London.”

The Lakers squeezed in one more practice before leaving today for London, where they will have a few days of practice and then play their exhibition opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves at the O2 Arena. Among today’s highlights:

–Kobe Bryant did not practice. Again. He might not play Monday, and even if he does it might be for only a a couple of six- to eight-minute bursts. He didn’t seem too broken up about the possibility of sitting out the exhibition against the Timberwolves. He has practice only once with his teammates since camp began Saturday. He said there was no swelling in his surgically-repaired right knee, however.

–Matt Barnes and Luke Walton, who are fighting for the backup small forward’s role, each came down with minor hamstring strains and had to sit out practice. Barnes’ injury is in his left hamstring and Walton’s is in his right. They are considered day-to-day.

–The Lakers made their first cuts of training camp. Anthony Roberson and Russell Hicks were waived after practice. The team will take 16 players to London and Barcelona.

–Derek Fisher has a new shoe deal. His contract with Nike ended and he has signed a new three-year deal with Adidas, which will help him with his summer youth camp..

Kobe Bryant continued to sit out and there are reasons to believe he might not play in Monday’s exhibition opener in London after undergoing offseason knee surgery. …
Then again, it is Kobe, and there’s usually no stopping him. It would be a shame for fans in London to miss out on the Kobe Show, such as it is for an exhibition. …
Ron Artest and Sasha Vujacic stood out while playing for the purple team during the scrimmage portion of today’s practice. Each hit a number of shots. …
Derrick Caracter and Devin Ebanks continued to impress. Their energy has given everyone a jolt of excitement during the early days of training camp, according to Phil Jackson. …
Not sure what to make of this, but Luke Walton played during the scrimmage with a team made up of mostly free agents who aren’t expected to make the team. …
The team will practice Thursday and then fly to London later in the day. After landing in London, the Lakers are scheduled to practice at the Crystal Palace sports facility. …

Kobe Bryant practiced Monday night, but sat out today’s workout. There’s no change in the Lakers’ plans for him. He is expected to play a few minutes in the exhibitions. …
Steve Blake practiced for the second straight day and looked just fine after suffering a mild sprain of his left ankle on Sunday. No reason to think he won’t play Monday. …
Andrew Bynum looked sharp while hoisting a few jump shots on one of the side baskets as the rest of the Lakers scrimmaged with three referees on hand to keep it fair. …
Sasha Vujacic hit several jumpers for the purple team (the starters) during the scrimmage. Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Ron Artest and Derek Fisher also played in purple. …
Artest then went one-on-one with rookies Derrick Caracter and Devin Ebanks in a post-practice session. Artest said they kicked his butt. …
Luke Walton has made it through the first four days of camp without a setback in his balky back, which limited him to only 29 games last season. Stay tuned, though. …

Kobe Bryant didn’t participate in the morning session, but might in the evening workout as he tries to get back to normal after undergoing offseason knee surgery. …
Steve Blake practiced in the morning and reported no setbacks after suffering a mildly sprained ankle in Sunday’s workout. …
Ron Artest has been slowed by a nagging hamstring injury, but has been pushing through practices without complaint, according to Lakers coach Phil Jackson. …
Jackson held his only two-a-day of camp today. Last year, he held only two. His reasoning is sound: the Lakers are a veteran team and don’t need to wear themselves out. …
Artest asked Jackson if Blake had been hanging around the practice facility a lot during the summer, since Blake seems to know the triangle offense quite well. …
Blake, in his first season with the Lakers, said he arrived two weeks early and also watched a DVD highlight reel of the triangle to prepare for camp. …
Artest had a yearlong struggle with the triangle in his first season with the Lakers after leaving Houston as a free agent in the summer of 2009. …

The Lakers almost made it through two practices without an injury, but then backup guard Steve Blake suffered a mild sprain of his left ankle near the end of today’s workout. The Lakers made it through Saturday’s practice without anyone getting injured. There was no immediate word on how long Blake might be sidelined. The Lakers leave Thursday for London, where they play their first exhibition game Oct. 4 against Minnesota.

Andrew Bynum couldn’t say for sure when he might make his 2010-11 debut, but it probably won’t be until late November. The Lakers’ 7-foot center said today at media day that he faces four more weeks of inactivity after undergoing offseason surgery on his right knee. He also revealed that the July 28 surgery performed by New York-based doctor David Altchek involved a repair of the torn meniscus. More often, damaged cartilage is simply cut away, but Altchek mended Bynum’s meniscus in this case. In general, the operation requires a longer recovery time than the typical six to eight weeks.

The Lakers signed four players to fill out their training camp roster. They inked guards Trey Johnson and Anthony Roberson and centers Andrew Naymick and Russell Hicks, none of whom are expected to make the roster for the start of the regular season. Training camp starts Sunday morning. There are 18 names on the roster, although there are only 17 healthy bodies since Andrew Bynum is sidelined after having offseason knee surgery.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson said Andrew Bynum’s minutes might be held to a strict limit once he’s ready to play. Bynum probably will sit out the Lakers’ first few games while he continues his recovery from offseason surgery on his right knee. Jackson said he doesn’t expect Bynum to play in the regular-season opener Oct. 26 against Yao Ming and the Houston Rockets. The Rockets have said they will restrict Yao’s minutes this season. He sat out all of last season after suffering a foot injury in the 2009 playoffs against the Lakers.

Andrew Bynum is not expected to play in any of the Lakers’ eight exhibition games next month and there is some concern that he might not be fit to play in the regular-season opener Oct. 26, according to team spokesman John Black.

The Lakers open training camp Sunday in El Segundo. They start exhibition play Oct. 4 against the Minnesota Timberwolves in London. Then they begin their quest for a third consecutive NBA championship Oct. 26 against the Houston Rockets at Staples Center.

There were two other medical updates today. First Kobe Bryant also had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee during the offseason. Unlike Bynum, Bryant is “right on target” to begin camp, according to Black. Second, Luke Walton, who was limited to only 29 games last season because of a pinched back nerve, told Black recently that his back “feels great.” The Lakers will wait and see how Walton fares during the rigors of camp.

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